The Girls in the Fight

As many of you know, I have tracked the Department of Defense ruling that would allow women to serve in direct ground combat units since it was announced in January of 2013. This DoD directive will impact Army and Marine Corps units in the near term, but what about special operations? The elevated physical standards have, to date, all but eliminated women in special operations ground combat roles. We’ve yet to see our first female SEAL, Green Beret, 75th Ranger, or Marine Raider. This is no wonder—those same standards eliminate 80 percent of the men. It’s only a matter of time until the various stakeholders—political, gender advocacy, diversity—will begin to ask, why no women in special operations? The below link is a good update on women in the special-operations mix.